


maybe another time

by mimimini



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, M/M, Pre-Relationship, Winter, brr it's cold, doyoung keeps chickening out and jungwoo just sighs internally
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-18
Updated: 2018-12-20
Packaged: 2019-09-21 13:52:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,135
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17044934
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mimimini/pseuds/mimimini
Summary: Maybe this time he wouldn't chicken out. Maybe this time he'd tell him.





	1. Chapter 1

“Have you been waiting long?”

Doyoung was five minutes late, and he had spent a good portion of them running to the bench in the park where he was supposed to meet Jungwoo. He had forgotten his scarf and his gloves, and he was starting to deeply regret it, feeling the cold like needles against the skin on his face and his fingers.

“No, I just got here,” Jungwoo replied, shuffling on his feet, and Doyoung could _feel_ his smile even though his face’s lower part was completely hidden by the blue scarf he had on. Doyoung recognised it immediately. He had gifted it to him last year for Christmas.

“Let’s go then,” Doyoung said, reaching to tug nervously at the hem of his beanie as he started walking, Jungwoo on his side. “Where do you want to go?”

Jungwoo didn’t answer, simply taking one of his hands out of his pocket--he wasn’t wearing gloves either--and pointing to the small cafe right in front of the park’s northern entrance.

It wasn’t the usual place. Doyoung sent him a curious glance, but Jungwoo was staring ahead.

“You look cold. I thought we should go to the closest place,” he mumbled into his scarf a few seconds later.

Doyoung felt grateful for Jungwoo’s small kindness, even though he was pretty sure Jungwoo was feeling almost as cold as him. The weather was a little warmer today, compared to the last couple of days, but it had been snowing since morning. Their feet were sinking into the fresh snow and the snowflakes were clinging to their clothes. Doyoung cursed himself for having set as his meetup spot with Jungwoo a bench in a park, many years before.

 

Sitting in front of each other at a small table, a mug of hot chocolate each warming their hands, Doyoung finally felt a bit more like a human being and less like a frozen brain with legs. The cafe felt cozy with its red, brown and green decorations, and it was almost empty, like a small corner of the world all for themselves.

“How was your day?” Jungwoo asked after taking a sip of his chocolate. From his grimace, Doyoung guessed he had just burnt his tongue, and he couldn’t suppress a smile.

“I spent the whole day in bed,” Doyoung replied. He had been feeling jittery about seeing Jungwoo the whole day, to be completely honest. Jittery, and in his bed. “I still have a couple of days before the winter session begins.”

“I see you’re making the most of your time.”

“I’m saving my energy,” Doyoung hissed, and Jungwoo laughed in response.

Doyoung smiled. They’d had similar exchanges hundreds of times. He looked down at his chocolate, and then back at Jungwoo.

“So,” he started once Jungwoo’s laughter had subsided.  
Jungwoo brought his mug to his lips, but he stopped before sipping it, looking at him expectantly. God, his eyes were, like, _sparkling_. And this wasn’t about how the Christmas lights in the shop were reflecting in his eyes. Doyoung found himself unable to speak.

“So?” Jungwoo prodded him on.

Doyoung lowered his gaze once again. “Nevermind. I’ll tell you later.”

 _Chicken, chicken, chicken_.

Jungwoo smiled at him. “Oh. Okay then.”

They finished their hot chocolate in a comfortable silence.

 

When they got back outside, the snowfall had increased in intensity. It was dark, and the streetlamps shone on the fresh snow with a yellow halo that made the street look as if it was a painting.

They were walking along the perimeter of the park, heading to the closest subway station. In the end, Doyoung hadn’t found the courage to say anything. They had chatted about the usual things--the vocational high school Jungwoo attended, their siblings, films they had watched online since they’d last seen each other--but nothing that came any way close to Doyoung’s feelings for Jungwoo. And what Jungwoo might think of that.

Doyoung stuffed his hands in his pockets, trying to bury himself in his coat’s collar. Without even realising, he found himself staring at his feets. It was getting colder, and the snow was probably going to freeze overnight. The next day every surface would have been deadly slippery. One more reason to bury himself in his bed and wallow in self-pity, he reasoned.

Suddenly, something warm was wrapped around his neck.

He stopped walking and straightened his neck. He looked surprised at Jungwoo, who had moved to stand in front of him, adjusting his scarf around Doyoung’s neck.

“You have to walk for longer than me to get home,” Jungwoo explained in a quiet voice as his hands worked and, in doing so, brushed against Doyoung’s cheeks. Jungwoo’s hands were warm for being in his pockets, and they felt nice on Doyoung’s skin.

“You don’t need to…” Doyoung started protesting, but he was interrupted by a firm tug at the scarf.

“This is the scarf you gave to me, so I want it back quickly. Tomorrow. We’re meeting again tomorrow and you’re bringing me back my scarf.” Jungwoo’s voice was confident and daring Doyoung to protest.

Doyoung simply nodded.

Maybe he would tell him tomorrow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i don't know if i should continue this or simply leave it as it is


	2. Chapter 2

The snow was falling, just like the previous day. Doyoung stood in front of Jungwoo's family's house, rooted in place, holding in one hand a plastic bag with Jungwoos’s scarf in it. He was freezing despite all the layers of clothing, his scarf, his beanie, his gloves, and his ears were burning for the cold. Yet, he still couldn't move.

He wouldn't have moved for quite a while had it not been for Jungwoo's sister walking out the door and seeing him there.

“What are you doing there? Are you waiting for Jungwoo?” she asked him.

“I,” Doyoung started, hesitated, closed his mouth.

“Come inside!” she said, inviting him in with a gesture of her arm. Then, she stepped back in the entrance and yelled at his brother to come down.

Doyoung's feet started moving, doing as told. He had always been kind of intimidated by Jungwoo's sister, ever since he first met her as a kid.

“I have to run, see you next time.”

He somehow found himself inside of the house, Jungwoo's footsteps down the stairs becoming closer and closer.

“You're early this time,” Jungwoo noted when he saw him, pleased. His eyes went to the scarf Doyoung was holding. “And you brought it back. Thanks.”

“Why should I keep something I gave you in the first place…” Doyoung muttered as he handed him the scarf.

Once his hands were free, he slipped out of his shoes. They went to the living room, where Doyoung started shedding the layers of clothes he had put on, until he was just in his trousers and a turtleneck. The house was silent. They were alone.

 

They stood there in silence. Jungwoo looked at him expectantly, and Doyoung found himself at loss.

“Wanna watch something on Netflix?” Jungwoo asked after a few seconds.

“Sure,” Doyoung replied with a nod. “Here or in your room?”

“Let’s stay here, we can watch it on the tv.”

 

Once they were ready on the sofa with a blanket and some snacks, Jungwoo turned on the tv, opened Netflix and started scrolling through a list of Christmas movies. He didn’t even bother asking Doyoung what he wanted to watch. He never did. The official version was that Doyoung didn’t really have a specific taste in movies, so he let Jungwoo choose. It wasn’t completely untrue, but to be completely honest, the fact was, as long as Jungwoo wanted to watch it, Doyoung was okay with it.

This time, Jungwoo picked a comedy from a few years ago. It didn’t take long before Doyoung started noticing that the plot felt vaguely familiar: maybe he had watched it already at some point, probably with his mother.

It wasn’t particularly good, but Jungwoo managed to laugh from time to time, and every time Doyoung would smile with him, almost without realising it.

Somewhere around the twenty minute mark Doyoung stopped paying attention to it, knowing already where the story was heading to. He hadn’t been able to sleep well the night before, and while he had slept a little around lunchtime, he felt drowsy, warm under the blanket that he and Jungwoo shared. It was getting more and more difficult to keep his eyes open.

Jungwoo’s laughter started sounding vaguely distant, and slowly, very slowly, Doyoung let his eyes shut.

 

He woke up with a start.

“Good morning,” Jungwoo said with a chuckle.

The movie was still going on.

“Did I miss much?” Doyoung asked, closing his eyes for one last moment.

“Most of it.”

It took Doyoung a whole minute in his drowsiness before realising he was leaning on Jungwoo’s shoulder.

He opened his eyes wide and tried to sit up, but while he was asleep Jungwoo had looped his arm around Doyoung’s shoulders, and when he tried to move, Jungwoo didn’t let him.

Doyoung panicked. Suddenly the air felt stuffy, Jungwoo’s arm too hot around his neck.

Maybe he felt him tensing, maybe he noticed his fidgeting--Jungwoo turned his head to look at him, and Doyoung looked up at him in return. _God_ , his face was so close. Jungwoo was biting his lower lip. It was a nervous tic he’d had since a kid, and Doyoung fought the urge to look down at Jungwoo’s lips.

After a beat too long, Jungwoo turned back to the tv and sighed. “I’ve been waiting for quite a while now,” he murmured.

In his growing confusion, the only thing Doyoung managed to say was a breathless _what?_.

Jungwoo sighed again. “You don’t have anything to tell me, then?”

After that, he finally moved his arm and let Doyoung’s shoulders free. Doyoung sat up slowly, his eyes still set on Jungwoo.

Jungwoo brought his knees to his chest. “I’m still waiting,” he mumbled.

Doyoung felt dizzy, as if he had breathed too much air. His brain couldn’t form a coherent thought. Jungwoo muttered something that sounded an awful lot like Doyoung’s name, in an irritated tone. He turned again to Doyoung, his brows furrowed.

Then, it clicked. Everything that was happening suddenly hit Doyoung, and the sensation made him feel elated and caught off guard and flustered and his hands were suddenly clammy and...

“I like you. I like you a lot,” Doyoung blurted out. “I've liked you for so long.”

Jungwoo opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, there was a loud crash and they both jumped in surprise. On the screen the protagonist had just tripped and managed to bring down with him a Christmas tree in front of his love interest.

After a few seconds of staring at the screen like deers caught in headlights, Jungwoo started giggling. His laughter was infectious, and soon Doyoung started laughing as well. All the tension he had felt melted like ice cream on a hot day.

When their laughter finally subsided, Jungwoo’s hand started inching closer to Doyoung’s. Doyoung watched his movements with amazement, the kind one feels when something it’s happening but they still can’t quite believe it. He took a deep breath and put his hand on Jungwoo’s without waiting, because what was the point of being hesitant now? But then Jungwoo tensed for a second and Doyoung realised Jungwoo didn’t really reply to his confession yet and _oh god_ had he misread the whole situation?

“So bold of you,” Jungwoo joked, relaxed once again, snapping Doyoung out of it. “It took you… how long? to just hold my hand.”

Doyoung reddened. Quite a lot of time, in fact. Jungwoo had been the whole reason for Doyoung’s sexuality crisis in his last year of high school, and there they were. “You could have said something, then.”

Jungwoo hummed pensively.

As he wasn’t getting any further comment on that, Doyoung decided to ask him, “Since when did you know?”

“Not so long,” Jungwoo admitted. “But then everything fell into place. It was nice seeing you squirming and trying to court me.”

Doyoung pouted, but it was for laughs.

 

They were watching the tv again, but not really paying attention to it. On the screen, the trailer for some other movie was playing, even though Doyoung didn’t recall the first movie finishing at all. Jungwoo had scooted closer and now it was his turn to lean on Doyoung’s shoulder, their hands still linked in his lap. They were basking in each other’s company, and that was enough to make Doyoung feel content.

Everything felt so new and yet so normal, but Doyoung didn’t want to rush things. There was plenty of time ahead of them for all the rest. And a couple of months of winter to snuggle up as much as they wanted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i don’t know what made me think i could continue after the first part when i’m incapable of writing decent confession scenes since i’m the most awkward person on the planet, but thank you @ the user who encouraged me to write this, hope you'll like it! ♡♡♡


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